Every year in the United States, roughly 200,000 people die from mistakes made in hospitals — errors that didn't have to happen. That's more than the populations of Des Moines, Iowa, or Boise, Idaho combined. One organization says it doesn't have to be this way.

The Patient Safety Movement Foundation, a nonprofit founded in 2012, has set a clear goal: zero preventable patient deaths by 2030. That's just six years away, and the group believes it's possible.

"What we're asking is not rocket science," said Dr. Michael Ramsey, the foundation's CEO. "What we are asking is basic human safety factors being put in place."

The problem is real. Some estimates put the U.S. death toll from medical errors as high as 200,000 people a year — enough to make it the third-leading cause of death nationwide, right behind heart disease and cancer. Globally, the number reaches 3 million, which is more than malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV combined.

Many of those deaths come from preventable causes: wrong medications, missed diagnoses, infections picked up in the hospital, and sepsis, a dangerous body reaction to infection that can kill within hours.

The reason these mistakes keep happening, Ramsey said, is that doctors and nurses are stretched thin. "There's so many things going on with patients that they make some errors that they should not make." But he believes better systems can help catch those mistakes before they become fatal.

The foundation has published 20 evidence-based safety practices for hospitals and encourages them to borrow ideas from the airline industry — think checklists and timeouts before surgery. Hospitals that have adopted these steps cut their complication rates by 30% to 50%, according to Ramsey.

Behind every statistic is a family. Rory Staunton was a 12-year-old boy in New York who cut his elbow during a school basketball game. He developed sepsis and died five days later when the infection was missed. His family pushed for change, and their efforts led to "Rory's Regulations," which now require New York hospitals to follow specific sepsis safety rules. Anders Pederson died after donating a kidney to his sister. While recovering from surgery, he received too much pain medication and stopped breathing — there was no monitor to catch it. His mother now urges hospitals to use pulse oximeters, small devices that track blood oxygen levels, for patients on strong pain drugs.

Ramsey said the simplest fix is also the most powerful: listen to the patient. He also shared a personal story — even he, a physician, once refused a middle-of-the-night dose when a student nurse couldn't explain what medication she was giving him.

"No question is stupid," Ramsey said. For patients looking to protect themselves, he recommends bringing a trusted friend or relative to appointments, writing down concerns ahead of time, and always asking what medication is being given and why.

With six years left to reach its goal, the Patient Safety Movement Foundation is betting that clearer systems, better checklists, and speaking up can save hundreds of thousands of lives.